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proud2BlibKansan

(96,793 posts)
Mon Sep 3, 2012, 09:05 PM Sep 2012

Why Did Jerry Lewis Leave the Telethon?

Not since, oh, Martin and Lewis has there been a showbiz breakup as sudden and inexplicable. Last year the Muscular Dystrophy Association announced that Jerry Lewis was stepping down as host of its annual Labor Day telethon, the marathon TV event he had made his personal showcase, soap box and sentimental journey for 45 years. With the show cut from 21.5 hours to just 6, Lewis was being replaced by a quartet of hosts, the MDA said, and would make an appearance only at the end of the show, to say goodbye and sing “You’ll Never Walk Alone” one last time.

Then what seemed the sad but inevitable end of an era became something uglier. A few weeks before the show, the MDA issued a curt announcement that Jerry Lewis would not be making a goodbye appearance after all — and was resigning from his post as MDA national chairman. The telethon went on without him (raising $61.5 million, more than the previous year with Lewis, according to the MDA) and included a filmed tribute to him and warm words of thanks from various participants during the show. But no Jerry.

A year later, Lewis has been all but erased from the telethon’s memory. This year’s show, airing the Sunday night before Labor Day, has been further downsized, to just three hours, with no named host and a smattering of B-list guest stars (Carrie Underwood, Will.i.am, Khloe Kardashian). It is no longer called a telethon, but simply an “entertainment special,” and there will be no tote board tallying the donations. In the press announcement of the event, Jerry Lewis’s name is nowhere mentioned.

The story behind Lewis’s departure remains untold. But a few things have become clear in the year since the awkward public breakup. Jerry Lewis was dumped by the MDA, the charity he had been identified with since the 1950s. He’s still bitter about it. And the telethon is withering without him.



Read more: http://entertainment.time.com/2012/08/16/why-did-jerry-lewis-leave-the-telethon/#ixzz25SUagNJu

11 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
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Why Did Jerry Lewis Leave the Telethon? (Original Post) proud2BlibKansan Sep 2012 OP
I thought he was dead NNN0LHI Sep 2012 #1
I think a lot of people believe he is dead. proud2BlibKansan Sep 2012 #2
Television Has Changed... KharmaTrain Sep 2012 #3
So who is the heir, Howie MANDEL?!1 n/t UTUSN Sep 2012 #4
You are aware that it was paying job for Lewis missingfink Sep 2012 #5
how much was he paid? hollysmom Sep 2012 #6
you serious? Snopes says no pay rurallib Sep 2012 #7
I Googled bigwillq Sep 2012 #8
beat me to it dsc Sep 2012 #10
Telethons have been criticized vankuria Sep 2012 #9
The buzz was he was ousted, not that he left last year. Lone_Star_Dem Sep 2012 #11

KharmaTrain

(31,706 posts)
3. Television Has Changed...
Mon Sep 3, 2012, 09:16 PM
Sep 2012

The telethon concept goes back even further...back when most areas had one or two channels. The format was a cheap way to fill a lot of hours during a holiday.

As a kid the Jerry Lewis Telethon was the only thing to watch...the other channels had reruns or boring movies...and it became a popular Labor Day "event". Kudo to Jerry for all his years of dedication and the telethon raise both money and awareness of MS but times and television changed.

The telethon concept no longer makes much of an impact in the era of 500 plus channels going 24/7 along with VCRs, DVDs and all sorts of other video distractions. Over the years the production costs of the show grew and the viewership declined. Just as Jerry has seen better days, so has the telethon.

missingfink

(174 posts)
5. You are aware that it was paying job for Lewis
Mon Sep 3, 2012, 09:28 PM
Sep 2012

The powers that be decided that he wasn't as effective as in the old days and thus went in another direction. Jerry was a very strong fund raiser for the charity for so many years but was not donating his time.

hollysmom

(5,946 posts)
6. how much was he paid?
Mon Sep 3, 2012, 09:35 PM
Sep 2012

some compensation for time and costume and make up is acceptable, millions would not be.

vankuria

(901 posts)
9. Telethons have been criticized
Mon Sep 3, 2012, 09:40 PM
Sep 2012

over the years by the disabled and their advocates and were especially vocal against the MDA. In an attempt to get donations telethons often make the disabled look helpless, sickly and to be pitied. The disabled became fed up with being looked at through this lens and have become a strong, vocal minority wanting respect and to have the same opportunities as everyone else. The telethons while they raise money do nothing to promote the image of the disabled as individuals who can work and be a contributing member of society.

I personally don't think much of the MDA. As a social worker I tried to get the MDA to fund a wheelchair ramp for a little boy with MD who used a wheelchair and his family had to carry him up the steps to their home and he was getting to big. The MDA said sorry can't help ya. I did end up getting grant money from the state to fund the wheelchair ramp, but this should have come from the MDA charity and not tax dollars.

I never thought much of Jerry Lewis, true he lent his name to the MDA and did the telethon. May-be I'm wrong but I always thought of him as a bully...just my opinion.

Lone_Star_Dem

(28,158 posts)
11. The buzz was he was ousted, not that he left last year.
Mon Sep 3, 2012, 09:45 PM
Sep 2012

Whatever the truth, they've not been able to match is donations since. It's really a thing of the past now.

Before anyone goes all snark on my post. The only reason I've kept up with this my entire life is I had a school mate who was "guest" with Jerry Lewis. Timmy's gone now, but I've followed it my entire life.

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